Tag Archives: Roofing

Roof maintenance is of so much importance for the home that to deny it would be insane. Your roof is the first defense for your home and its upkeep is of the most paramount importance.

ROUTINE INSPECTION

The first of duties regarding roof maintenance is to do a regular inspection by yourself and your contracted roofing specialist. A quick glance is first to see if any objects are embedded in the roof. Look then for missing tiles or shingles. Look also for gaps and holes. Any of these could mean disaster if not repaired immediately. Even the smallest gap or opening should be investigated with scrutiny just to be on the safe side. Gutters along the roof should be checked for stability and clogging. Any indication of damage is a signpost for immediate attention. Your roofing contractor should have a routine inspection option and if not you should ask about it or make it a priority regarding your seeking a roof maintenance specialist.

ROUTINE ROOF MAINTENANCE

Routine roof maintenance means to tend to your roof on a yearly basis. Replace missing or loose tiles or shingles and keeping the roof clean. There are lots of tools for cleaning the roof but it may be wise to have a contractor do it. At a maximum once every five years should suffice but that is only if you do your roof inspections frequently, especially after extreme weather events like storms.

ANIMALS AND INSECTS

Only water damage and wind damage surpass the damage that animals and insects can do. Animals will find your roof the same protection priority that you do. They’ll notice how warm and dry it is inside your roof and will, if not prevented, tunnel in, dig in, upend your roof just to gain access inside your home and set up shop. Raccoon, possums, squirrels, bats, are the usual culprits here and they may be difficult to detect if you can’t hear them. This calls for inspecting not only the outside of the roof but the inside. Your attic should provide access here and looking behind and under everything in your attic to discover where the critters are hiding out. Once detected, don’t take them on single handed, let the professionals do it. You may need a pest control professional first, and then a roofing pro second. The pest control expert will dispatch the invaders without doing further damage and will recommend how to clean up afterward and prevent further incursions. Insects are the big nightmare here. They can lie inside your walls without detection until it’s too late to handle things affordably. Termites especially. Bees are dangerous and only a pro pest control should be employed. Animals and insects excrete both waste and other materials that can do considerable damage to wood and other materials so that’s why you need to take care of the problem under your roof as soon as you notice them.

WEATHER DISASTERS

It’s no surprise that weather is the number one cause of roof damage. That being said, after every storm of magnitude the roof should be inspected. Use the right weatherproofing and inspect the roof and repair anything prior to each season. We never know how severe the seasons’ weather will bring but it’s better to be safe than sorry.

Irrespective of the fact that you are installing a new roof from scratch or replacing the old roof, many materials are available in the market. The options are virtually endless with options ranging from asphalt, composite shingles, wood, concrete, clay tiles, slates, etc. The style is not the only important aspect, but you need to consider the weight of the material, the product costs and the necessary installation requirements. Hence, when you are going to choose a new roof for the house, always ensure you are considering the following points:

Square

Before finalizing the materials, it is important to check the specs. Instead of square feet, roofers measure the roof in squares. Here a single square measures 100 square feet (10x10ft) in the area. Hence, if the house measures 2500 square foot in the area and has a gable roof measuring 1,875 square feet, you need to buy 188-190 squares in total.

Cost Factor

Pricing of the material is the next important thing. The costs would substantially be high in case you are remodeling the house and stripping off the old materials. Additional expenses would also include the costs involved in repairing the supporting structure. Lastly, the shape of the roof will also be a major determinant too. While a gable roof having few breaks will be a simple roofing task, a house with multiple chimneys, turrets, intersecting rooflines skylights, etc. would substantially increase your costs.

Materials

It is not possible to use every type of roofing material on any roof. A flat roof or the one having a low slope will need a different material like a steeper pitch. The standard options that are available in the market include:

Asphalt Shingle: It is widely popular due to the minimal cost factor and the ease of installation. Made of fiberglass, it is impregnated with asphalt and comes with a surface similar to the sand-like granules. The prices start as low as $50 per square and go up with the kind of shingle that is selected and installed.

Wood: Use of wood for roof dates back to centuries and remains among the favorite options. The options range from redwood, southern pine, cedar, etc. Wood has a life expectancy of 25 years but costs twice as much as the other materials such as asphalt shingles.

Metal: Copper, steel, copper & asphalt, Aluminum, lead and other similar durable materials are also used for roofing purposes. Typically expensive, most of these are manufactured as seamed roofs comprising of vertical lengths of metal connected using a solder. Their range starts from $250.

Tile & Cement: Known as half cylinders of tile roofing, they are common on Spanish Colonial and Mission styles. They are expensive but highly durable and heavy.

Slate: Another durable material, slates are available from different quarries. They are sourced from Vermont, Pennsylvania and other states also provide multiple options. Starting from $800 a square, these can last for hundred years and above with low maintenance.

Finalizing your Choice

When it comes to remodeling, the existing roof of the house plays a most important role to complete the best roofing material. However, other factors such as texture, color, durability, weight, etc. will also be some of the crucial points to consider.

Key Installation Notes

Use flashing for exterior work on the roof and its siding. It is usually a metal or a plastic film that is applied in strips around areas where dissimilar materials are joined.
Irrespective of the choice of roof materials, coursing needs to be parallel to the edges. It is important that the joints are staggered from a course to the other to prevent any leakage.
Use cedar shakes or lengths of furring strips laid across the roof for allowing the roof to breathe.

For professional roofing services that are affordable and offered from experienced roofers, Kidder Roofing is a reliable name in the Clearwater area. For availing their services, dial 727-532-2300 or follow them on social media.

Elon Musk, the head honcho of Tesla Inc. that pioneered the large-scale use of plug-in electric cars and also specializing in energy storage solutions and solar panels, declared at a conclave that solar energy could power the entire US. At the National Governors Association Summer Conference held in July, he elaborated on how all the homes throughout US can be powered up solely with solar roof tiles. He elucidated that it would require a reasonably small area in Utah, Texas or California for installing 100 sq. miles of solar panels in order to accomplish the task.

Last year in October, Tesla released its up-to-the-minute products-an advanced Powerpack 2 and Powerwall 2, energy storage solutions and a versatile solar roof. In that year, Musk bought out SolarCity, a frontline photovoltaic cell manufacturing firm shelling out US$2.6 billion, synergizing its operations with those of Tesla. The merger enabled the innovative entrepreneur to promote the entire product line of Tesla, including solar roofs capable of fully replacing fossil fuels for meeting a home’s overall energy needs.

The energy that Tesla’s solar roofing taps from the rays of the sun is preserved in the Powerwall 2 which is technically speaking a battery for use in residences with a 14kWh rating. At daytime, the rows of solar shingles or tiles produce electricity as well as charge up the battery packs which thereafter lights up homes at night and also runs sundry appliances. Subsequently, the homeowner is relieved from the necessity of subscribing to a conventional utility service for fulfilling his electricity requirements.

Does it imply that solar roofs of Tesla will give utility and energy companies, a run for their money and eventually compel them to go out of business? As of now, that is still just a remote possibility and hence the idea may seem a little farfetched presently. Coming back to basics, each and every unit of Powerwall is sufficiently capable of supplying electrical power for a whole day.

To be precise, a typical Powerwall battery can be restructured and adapted to deliver the combined power of 9 such packs from a single unit. Alternatively, Powerpack2 which has been exclusively designed for heavy-duty commercial use is scalable to an unlimited extent. The solar roof is made up of photovoltaic cell units that are layered with glass tiles and colored optical louver films.

Tesla right now is offering four different types of solar tiles that have been designed with painstaking care which makes them appear like traditional terracotta, slate, wooden, asbestos, and metallic roofing shingles. Elon has taken advantage of a hydrographic printing technique for making his solar panels look nearly identical to conventional rooftop materials. Musk’s company started taking orders shortly after the conclave in which he outlined the benefits of the solar tiles.

And Tesla began processing the orders and rolling out the roofs from August. Melon is confident that the homeowner will be able to recoup his or her solar roof investment over a 30-year period and accordingly offering a warranty for a similar time period.

If you are homeowner or own a piece of real estate in Clearwater or Pinellas County, you can contact Kidder Roofing at 727-532-2300 for getting a quote on solar roofing.

The Caribbean and United States have been slammed by the most powerful storms in recorded history. It’s a situation where homeowners are struggling to keep their homes. What’s worse is that the predators who look to engage in roofing insurance scams are hot on the heels of unsuspecting homeowners.

The Problem

When disaster strikes so do criminals. It’s not just an issue of some small shady company coming along and stealing money from the devastated homeowner, it’s a matter of even large companies and even public officials who participate in these schemes.
You may have not left yourself vulnerable because these crooks can find ways to get to you that no one has ever suspected. It’s because they look for the loopholes that allows them to bamboozle you out of your money.
The courts try to pass laws to beat them down, but the minute they pass one law, the crooks find a hole in another.

Fighting Back

Fighting back is a matter of prevention mostly. Make sure you have a list of phone number sot reputable certified roof repair companies and other repair companies before a disaster strikes. Doing things last minute is a sure fire way to get caught up in a hurricane repair roofing scam for sure.
If you’ve been smart, you’ll have all your insurance info on hand after the wind and flooding damage. It will outline what your benefits are. Criminals know this and that you’ll get money fast and they want every dime of it. They’ll swoop in with documentation they want you to sign that forks over that money. The primary scam is called an Assignment Of Benefits aka AOB.
The AOB is what these scammers want you to sign right off the bat so that they can then rip you off. It’s an old scheme and officials warn people not to sign these. If anyone shows up trying to intimidate or con you with a smile into signing one of these, give them the boot right away.
The AOB isn’t the only scam but so are unscrupulous people who come by and claim you have to pay for an assessment of the damage and that you should fork over money upfront for repairs. No, none of these is legal or acceptable. It’s a clear sign the company is trying to rip you off. No doubt about it.

Credentials Are Everything

Even if a company shows up with all smiles and handshakes, they had better be able to present their credentials when asked. Any hesitation regarding this is a clear sign they either don’t have their gear together or they don’t have the credentials and lawful certification required by law to do the contracting they’re trying to get you to pay for.
You can use your smartphone to check on credentials easily. The government, both state and federal have certification data online and you can bring up that data and present it to the contractor to validate. If none of it is there, or if they claim their certification is not accessible due to their website being down then you just smile, excuse yourself and go on about your business.

The Right People To Call

If you’re up against a wall with no roofing to protect yourself and you’re worried about getting ripped off, then just call Kidder Roofing!Kidder Roofing has so many industry awards for top-notch service that they are a bona fide industry leader. Roofing companies around the country wish they could match the service and value of the staff of Kidder Roofing.
So get it done right with Kidder Roofing.

Usually, people tend to neglect the roof of their house till it starts leaking. However, it is not a good idea to wait till the danger arrives. It is certainly not a good sight when you take out buckets to stop the leaking roof from spoiling your furniture or the floor. As per the National Roofing Contractors Association, households need to perform regular roof inspection at least twice a year. The two seasons that demands a thorough attention are a spring and fall. With spring around the corners, it is time you inspect or take professional help to inspect the roof. One needs to remove the debris from the rooftops, downspouts, and gutters. While doing so a closer inspection for possible damages is another thing that needs to be done. Seven key signals that indicate that you need to replace the roof or at the most repair it for the damages are:

Look Inside
If you are wondering it’s time you replaced the roof, the best advice would be to check the attic and not the exterior. Carry a flashlight and climb up to the eaves. From its bottom, look for any possible beam of light coming from the top of the house. Also, take a closer look to search for any stains or streaks around the area. These are possible signals of a leaky roof.

Check Old Records
The next thing to do is checking old home improvement records. It is evident people tend to forget the last time they had reshingled or replaced their roofs. Usually, asphalt shingle roofs are meant to be used for 20 to 25 years. Hence, if it’s been 20 years or more, you should seriously be considering a replacement after a thorough inspection.

Check the Shingles
Perform a close inspection of the rooftop for making sure that it is in the ship-shape. Thes inspection is highly significant if a massive storm had subsided in your area recently. The shingles should appear to be flat against the roof, but in case you find cracked patches, it is time to repair. Concurrently, check the gutters, as well as the downspouts for shingle granules as the roof that has lost loads of granules, could be nearing its life.

Flash Around
Flashing around the skylights, chimney seals and vents of the roof will seal the seams of the ceiling. One needs to examine these areas and ensure that there are no breaks or cracks around the area. In old homes, flashing is usually made from roof tar or cement but using a metal flashing system is a better alternative due to its durability.

Protection from Rot
A saggy roof that appears to be droopy is certainly an indicator that you have to replace the roof immediately. If adequate steps are not taken, it may further damage the house. Here, checking the surface to ascertain the presence of rotting boards, sagging sprouts or trapped moisture is important.

Presence of houseplants
Moss on a shady corner certainly looks good in a yard but not on the roof. It indicates the presence of trapped moisture that may ruin the roof. For removing the moss collected in the shaded corners of the roof, you can use the stiff brush but make sure you carefully address the underlying problems.

Never Panic
Lastly, irrespective of the condition of the roof, you should never panic. Having a few damaged shingles that are leaking doesn’t mean that you need to replace the entire roof. In case it not been long enough since you had installed the roof, you can always go for repairs instead of full replacement.

Professional help is certainly important to ascertain the condition of the roof and the best possible measures. Kidder roofing offers its professional roofing services to residents of Pinellas County. They can be reached by calling the customer support number at 727-532-2300 or filling out the quick contact form on their website.

When it comes to understanding your current (or future) roofing system, there is no “wrong” question. As a homeowner, it is essential that you ensure the integrity of your roof at all times, properly care for and maintain the shingles, and protect it from outside elements that could lead to damage that could have otherwise been avoided.
Let’s review the Top 5 Frequently Asked Questions about residential roofing – which in some cases also apply to business or industrial roofing setups.

1. How do I know when it’s time to purchase a new roof?

Typically, roofing shingles or wooden shakes will last between 15 to 30 years, depending on the weather and environment you live in, as well as any obstructions or damage from surrounding elements – such as branches. Another common trouble with worn or broken tiles is inadequate water irrigation systems, and flooding on your roof which may eat away at your current roofing system at a higher rate than anticipated.
Some signs of a broken or beyond repair roofing system needing a total replacement are: curling shingles, decayed or missing shingles, visible cracks, missing or rusted flashings, wind damage, missing shingles, and cracked or discolored interior drywall.
In such instances, investing in a professional roof replacement by a trusted roofer would likely make the most sense.

2. How much will a new roof cost?

Depending on the type of roofing system you choose, as well as the roofing professional you hire, prices can vary significantly. Also, take into consideration the grade, brand, and type of roofing systems you’re going to go with, as well as the size of your roof and if it has a sloping roofline.
Starting with an expert roofing professional is the way to go, and often you can receive a free quote in doing so. Don’t settle for cheaper materials or labor, as this can be more costly in the long-run for repairs, or an otherwise improperly installed roofing system.

3. If I’ve received three various offers for repairs or roof replacement, how do I know which one to go with?

Depending on the scope of work to be done, whether it’s removing entirely or fixing your current roofing system you should take into full account the necessary work. In many cases, flashing work, ventilation or adding new vents, and removal-costs might be included in the quoted price – or additional. Also, the installation method, as well as proposed deadline should play significant roles in determining which professional to go with – and why.
Other variables to take into consideration are payment procedures, and of course length or type of warranty, such as what is covered in the instance of poor installation, improper workmanship, or even water leakage later on.

4. Why has my professional roofer only offered one year warranty on my asphalt shingle roofing system?

It is important to create a distinction between a manufacturer’s warranty and a contractor’s warranty – which is typically one based solely on his or her workmanship. However, a contractor’s warranty will likely offer much less coverage and typically remains relevant only to installation issues. Therefore, carefully review the contract and warranty details to see what’s covered or isn’t before starting the work. Always ensure you also receive the necessary certificates, documents, and warranty or guarantee contracts for your new roofing system.

5. Can I replace or repair my current roof on my own?

Speaking frankly, attempting to change or repair a roof on your own can be very dangerous, or even more costly in the long run. Typically, professional roofers have years of experience, and certain qualifications, licensing and insurance that the average home owner will either not be familiar with or possess. Worse, an everyday homeowner might damage the roofing system further, accumulating even more unwanted costs.
Also, the professional equipment – including safety equipment – necessary for most roofing system jobs and installations are very costly, and may not be something considered by the average DIYer.
Ultimately, depending on the style, materials, and type of home you have, roofing experience, and installation can vary greatly. This is why it’s so important to go with a reputable, trusted, and licensed roofer.
If in doubt, continue to research online the various types of roofing systems available to you, and what might make the most sense given the climate and environment you live in.

For starters, metal roofing is a much more efficient, practical, and affordable solution for preserving the integrity of your home, as well as saving you a multitude of other costs in the process.
There are many reasons why you should consider metal roofing, so read on to review the Top 10 reasons to invest in metal roofing the next time you consider repairing or replacing your current roof.

1. For starters, going with a metal roofing system means you’ll have the best roofing installation and materials in the market when it comes to preventing fires. Metal roofs, by industrial standards, are Class A which is the highest class for preventing fires, making them practically “fireproof.”

2. While competing for roof setups rely on materials like asphalt that only last an average of 15-20 years, metal roofing in almost every instance will last between 30-50 years, and in many cases will include up to a 50-year manufacturer’s warranty.

3. A metal roof is a perfect solution if you live in an exceptionally sunny or hot climate, as metal roofing will reflect UV rays and thereby prevent any UV damage and the unwanted wear and tear that comes along with it.

4. Unlike wooden or concrete tile roofs, metal roofing won’t dry out, crack, or ‘curl.’ Also consider, concrete roofing systems although quite durable, do not hold up well against freeze/thaw cycles which are a major drawback regarding stability or your roofs overall integrity or longevity.

5. A Metal Roof will retain both its strength and cosmetic appearance over the years while competing and often more expensive roofing materials will not – and also require more consistent, extensive and costly repairs from maintenance over the years.

6. If you’re looking for the most environmentally-friendly solution for your next roof, then metal roofing is the perfect solution! According to statistics, more than 20 billion pounds of asphalt shingles are dumped in land-fills yearly! While metal roofs, on the other hand, are made from 56% all the way up to 95% in recycled materials.

7. Metal roofs are unique, as they can minimize labor and cost while maximizing convenience by being placed on top of current roofing setups, and for a fraction of the price of other leading inrdustry materials and brands.

8. Going with a metal roofing installation also means saved costs on insurance, as home insurance companies give preference and discounts to those with metal roofs in comparison to other materials. In fact, in the course of having to replace your asphalt shingle roofs twice over the period of 30 years, you’d still have the same, durable, and brilliant metal roof up and running just fine, for 50 years or more!

9. Metal roofs serve a great added purpose of saving you costs for heating or air-conditioning your home, as it is the industry’s leading material for effectively preserving insulation.

10. For anyone interested in investing in a metal roof it’s also worth considering that metal roofing is one of the most lightweight in the industry – at just an average of 50-150lbs per square. This means an easier and faster installation, which amounts to fewer labor costs for installation – as well as maintenance costs.

Trusting metal roofing for your next home installation repair or repair also offers many other benefits, like structuring your roof to have minimum roof pitch, which equals less of a leaking potential when it rains. The minimum metal roof pitch is 3-in-12 and is excellent for shedding away both rain and snow – as the panels interlock.

Metal roofs are also made both hard for durability, as well as slippery for keeping debris and other elements from weathering off your roof. Best of all, there are practically identical amounts of various beautiful styles of metal roofing to choose from, that will match any home or neighborhood.

Finally, metal roofing installations come with concealed fasteners which add both to beauty and weather tightness, and many have transferable warranties which mean the next owner of your home can easily obtain the same benefits and guarantee of your homes roof.

From Kynar 500 to Hylar 5000 coatings, there is a metal roofing setup for everyone in nearly any climate!